The Big Bang Theory has cemented its place in the comedy hall of fame. The American sitcom ran for 12 seasons and remained number one for much of its run. However, the show's fate could have been much different if it was titled something else. A new book on the Emmy-winning series has revealed the original title, and let's just say we're glad the name was changed.

Original title of The Big Bang Theory revealed

A new book by Jessica Radloff titled The Big Bang Theory: The Definitive, Inside Story of the Epic Hit Series unveils that the CBS series' original name in the first draft was Lenny, Penny, and Kenny. 

That's right, Sheldon, played by Jim Parsons, was going to be named Kenny. While Lenny was Leonard (Johnny Galecki) and Penny (Kaley Cuoco) remained the only one who kept her name.

In an interview for the book, co-creator Bill Prady stated, "Lenny, Penny, and Kenny was the original placeholder title of the show, so Lenny was the Leonard character, and Kenny was the Sheldon character.

 That title lasted for about five minutes. In fact, my contract says 'Lenny, Penny, and Kenny' a/k/a 'Big Bang Theory.'"

Luckily, the comedy went through a few big changes, including changing the friends' careers from computer programmers to scientists. 

That's when the title began to change too. Another creator, Chuck Lorre, shared, "I emailed Bill and said, 'Let's take a look at various scientific phrases and see if there's anything in any of them.' One of the titles on the list was 'The Big Bang Theory...' something you learn studying sciences."

The show's theme song was provided by Barenaked Ladies with their song, The History of Everything, which had the iconic lyrics that most of the audience can sing along to, "Math, science, history, unraveling the mysteries. That all started with the big bang."

The Big Bang Theory spinoffs

After 12 seasons and 279 episodes, The Big Bang Theory ended on May 16, 2019. However, its legacy did not end there. It was followed by the prequel series Young Sheldon starring Iain Armitage, which ran for seven seasons.